Claims
- 1. Apparatus for determining if tissue is cancerous as opposed to benign or normal comprising:
- a. a source of monochromatic light for illuminating a tissue at a wavelength which will fluoresce at wavelengths where the intensity for cancerous tissue and that of benign or normal tissue are different;
- b. a pair of photodetector assemblies for measuring the intensity of light emitted from said tissue at two different wavelengths, each photodetector assembly including a photodetector and a filter, one filter being constructed to pass light at about 340 nm and the other at about 440 nm, each filter having a bandwidth of about 30 nm.;
- c. a length of optical fiber bundle for transmitting said fluorescent light from said tissue to said pair of photodetector assemblies;
- d. means coupled to said pair of photodetector assemblies for producing a processed signal corresponding to the signals from the pair of photodetector assemblies, and
- e. means for displaying said processed signal.
- 2. A method for determining if tissue is cancerous as opposed to benign or normal comprising:
- a. exciting a tissue to be examined with a beam of light that is at least substantially monochromatic, and at a wavelength between about 260 and 315 nm, whereby native fluorescence is emitted from the tissue,
- b. measuring the intensity of the native flurorescence at two wavelengths, one wavelength being about 340 nm and the other wavelength being about 440 nm, and
- c. determining if the tissue is cancerous as opposed to benign or normal in accordance with said measurements at said two wavelengths.
Government Interests
This invention was made with Government support under Contract N00014-87-K-0431 awarded by the Department of the Navy. The Government has certain rights in this invention.
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